The Tracker's Soul
by Shlayne
Summary: "Every being has a mate: once found, it is heaven, but once lost, I guarantee you that you will wish for eternal death everyday of your life." Marcus once warned Demetri.
1. Chapter 1

Today, Lorraine had one purpose: going to her roommate's work and finding out what happened to her. Valentina had a tendency to sleep at her lovers' homes but she would usually contact Lorraine to give her a heads up that she wasn't coming back that night. However, it's been 48 hours and Lorraine hasn't heard a word from Valentina. She tried calling her, texting her, calling her different lovers, their mutual friends, and no one had seen her. Needless to say, Lorraine was getting worried. That morning, after checking her cellphone one last time, she decided to head down to Valentina's workplace to see if anyone knows anything.

She quickly took a shower and got dressed. She wore white jeans with a plain white tank top and a forest green jacket that went well with her rich auburn hair. She opted to wear kitten black heels since the location was at walking distance. As she looked at herself at the mirror before heading out, she smirked. Valentina would have disapproved of this outfit, just like she did all of her outfits; "Lorrie, it's too plain! Bring some sexiness damn it! That's how we women get ahead in life! We have sexiness that men don't have and need!" she would say and Lorraine would retort that everyone has his or her own style and that hers was elegant and classy. Just like that happy thought popped in her mind, it quickly left. She needed to find out what happened to her best friend.

Once outside, she made her way to her destination and arrived within 15 minutes. She was faced with two huge doors, so she knocked and waited. Two minutes passed, then five, so she knocks again. Nothing. She pushes the door and is met by a long hallway.

"Hello." She yells out as loudly as possible. "Hello." She yells once more as she makes her way through the hallway. She soon sees an elevator and as she's about to push the button, she feels someone behind her and hastily turns around. There stood a tall pale woman with mahogany hair and hazel eyes.

"Good morning, how may I help you?" she asks Lorraine, smiling widely and showing off her white perfect teeth. A voice was telling Lorraine not to trust this woman.

"Good morning, my name is Lorraine and I'm looking for a friend of mine who works here. Her name is Valentina. Do you know her?"

"Ah yes, of course I know Valentina. What about her?"

"Well, she's been missing. I, well we, our friends and I haven't heard from her and it's been over 48 hours. That's very unlike her, so I was wondering if you know anything."

"I'm sorry but there really isn't anything that I can tell you. All that I know is that she resigned and left. She didn't even take her personal belongings with her."

"That's so odd. I know for a fact that she loved this job and wanted to be promoted. I really don't understand."

"I'm sorry but there's nothing more that I know of."

"Well thank you for your time, ma'am."

"You're welcome and I wish you luck."

"Thank you." But as Lorraine was walking away she quickly remembers a name and stops. "Santiago. She had a crush named Santiago. Would I be able to talk to him? He might know something."

This clearly agitated the pale woman. Lorraine felt like she either knew something and didn't want to share, or she frankly didn't care. ' _Or both_.' The inner voice whispers to Lorraine.

"Yes. There is an employee named Santiago, if you come with me I'll introduce you. We just have to take the elevators."

' _Do not follow her!'_ The voice orders her. Quick minded, Lorraine replies, "Would it be okay if he comes here instead? I'm scared of elevators and I need to report back to her parents. I told them that I was coming here and they're waiting for my call."

After a moment of looking at Lorraine straight in her eyes, she reacts, "As you wish." And then disappears into the elevators. Once she was out of sight, Lorraine quickly shares her location via iPhone with her friend Simon, and asks him to come. A minute or so after the text was sent Simon arrives.

"How the hell did you get here so fast?" Lorraine asks.

"I was literally across the street when you texted. So tada! What are you doing here?"

"This is where Valentina works."

"So you still haven't heard from her?"

"No and check this out. According to the woman I was talking to, who works here as well, Valentina gave her resignation letter."

"So?"

"The girl loved this job! This was the first job that she ever loved because, according to her, it was easy money. And she kept on saying something about the "promotion of a lifetime". So after all that, she just suddenly resigns? Makes no sense!"

"Maybe the work was too much? Or she realized the amount of work that this promotion would bring?"

"No and no. Besides, why no tell me? Or come back home?"

"It wouldn't be the first time that she hid something from you, Lorraine."

"Let's not talk about that, Simon, and besides that's not the point."

"I'm just saying that this girl is not the innocent saint that you're making her out to be. Besides, she's disappeared before."

"And tells me about it beforehand."

The elevator doors interrupt the conversation. The tall woman came back with a dark skin colored man with long dark hair and black eyes. Next to him, was a pale tall man with short brown hair and black eyes.

"I see you've got company now." The woman said.

"Yes, this is my friend Simon. Simon, this is, I'm sorry I didn't catch your name? "

"My name is Heidi. This is Demetri and that is Santiago."

Lorraine pays full attention to Valentina's crush, Santiago. "Hello. Mr. Santiago, my name is Lorraine and I'm a friend of Valentina. Valentina is missing and I was hoping that you would have some information."

"I am sorry but I don't. I just know that she resigned and that was the last that I heard of her."

"Did she say why she resigned?" Simon asks Santiago.

"No. She told me that she was going to resign and that day she did. I have not heard from her ever since."

"We still have her belongings, you should take it with you." Heidi says.

"Okay." Simon starts moving toward Heidi when Lorraine puts her hand on his arm.

"Thank you but if Valentina didn't take them that means she didn't want them. Or it might be a sign that she's coming back." Lorraine quickly explains. "Thank you so much for your help, do have a wonderful day." Lorraine grabs Simon by the arm and quickly disappears.

The refusal to get Valentina's "belongings" surprised all three members of the Volturi. Heidi's powers clearly worked on Simon but Lorraine easily shook it off.

During the entire exchange, Demetri was quiet and closely observing Lorraine. She wasn't as gorgeous as Heidi and some women he's met during the centuries, but she can definitely hold her own. She had tan skin with rich auburn hair and hazel eyes. Her friend Simon was a redhead.

Another thing that he noticed that worried him was her scent. She smelled fresh, as if coming from the sea, it was comforting and peaceful; which was unusual since the reason why she was here obviously brought her some stress.

"There's nothing to worry about. She will not come back." Heidi says reassuringly, however she couldn't shake away her unease of not being able to influence the girl. Santiago shakes his head as a sign of agreement.

But Demetri disagrees, "She's strong-willed. She might not come back here but it's not over for her."

* I am trying my hand with Twilight. Demetri is a character that always intrigued me. *

* Please review/comment. I want to know if I have readers and if I should continue with the story. Thank you. *


	2. Chapter 2

"Something's not right." Lorraine remarks to Simon as they were walking down the street.

"Something is definitely off."

"Really? You seem so willing to go with that Heidi chick."

"Exactly! Like I felt like I had to go with her. I didn't want to but I was happy to. Does that make sense?"

"It doesn't. And I know you, if you don't want to do something you won't do it. But that's just proof that something is off."

"But why did she come back with those two guys though?"

"I had asked her about this guy named Santiago because I know that Valentina had a crush in there named Santiago. And she went to get him for me."

"Okay, that explains Santiago's presence, but what about that other guy?"

"Demetri?"

"Yes, him. Why was he there? It's not like he said anything. He was more observing than talking."

"True."

"Look I agree with you that something is up over there but we don't know if it's linked to Valentina missing. We don't even know if she's missing for sure. But you're right something is definitely not right. I think that we should regroup."

"Regroup?"

"It's noon, I'm starving so let's find a place to sit down, eat and brainstorm."

"You and food!"

"I am a growing boy!"

"You're 26! You're no longer a boy but a grown man!"

"My mother says that I'm a growing boy, therefore a growing boy I am. Your argument is invalid and you may kiss my ass." With that, they both laughed and made their way to a cozy restaurant to focus on finding out about Valentina.

Meanwhile, Demetri makes his way down to meet Aro, Marcus and Caius.

"Has everything been resolved?" Aro asks him.

"Yes and no, Master. I can assure you that she will not come back but she will not stop inquiring either."

"I see."

"In addition, Valentina apparently had family and they have been made aware of her disappearance."

Aro was not that concerned about this news but nonetheless wanted to be on the safe side.

"Well then," Aro started, "have one of the guards follow her."

"Demetri should be the one following her." Marcus interjected knowingly, which surprised Aro.

"It's settled. Demetri, your task is to follow this girl and thwart her every move in her investigation."

"As you wish, Master."

"You are excused." So Demetri takes his leave to prepare for his mission.

As he reaches his quarters, he sees Felix waiting for him.

"How did it go? Heidi is agitated." Felix inquires. Demetri felt terrible for his dear friend. Felix has been infatuated with Heidi, while Heidi has always been infatuated with herself and her power. The woman was the opposite of monogamy and changes lovers the same way she changes her nail polish. Demetri had warned Felix but his friend was blinded.

"Heidi is agitated because her powers did not work on the girl that was here. The girl will not stop her inquisition on Valentina so Aro gave me a mission."

"To kill."

"No, to follow and stop her."

"Oh. I have to admit I do miss dear Valentina." Felix and Valentina were lovers. It was his pathetic way of making Heidi jealous. Of course, it didn't work.

"I must say that I was surprised that you didn't kill her." Demetri says.

"When you have a sole purpose, you are able to overcome your instincts." Felix calmly retorts.

"Felix, I would have never labeled you as a philosopher! After centuries of friendship you are able to chock me! Bravo!"

After rolling his eyes in the most masculine way possible, Felix responds, "So what is your strategy for the mission?"

"Nothing extravagant. I'll follow her for a week to get an idea of her routine than visit her place when she's out to have a sense of the seriousness and progress of this so-called investigation." Demetri then stops to remember Lorraine's interaction with Heidi and Santiago. He genuinely smiles at that thought.

"What is it, Demetri?"

"She's feisty."

"Who is?"

"Lorraine."

"Who?"

"My mission. The woman who upset Heidi. She has fire in her. She's strong yet elegant. She has her own beauty that's overshadowed by her confidence. Remarkable creature really."

"I'm sensing more."

"There isn't any."

"Demetri, we've been friends for centuries. We've called each other best friends and confided our darkest secrets to each other. We're as close as Jane and Alec." Unbeknown to most of Volturi, Felix is an emotional being. He is very flirtatious with all of the women but he is emotional and protective over those he formed an attachment with.

Demetri made sure that he looked away before answering his friend. He did not want to show signs of worry. Or was it worry? What exactly was he feeling? He knew that he was intrigued with her but her scent is what worried him because it was soothing. He has lived for centuries and never experienced this. So yes, maybe he was a bit worried.

"Her scent."

"What about it?"

"It's calming, reassuring, alluring. I want more of it."

"Is she your singer?"

"No. A blood singer attracts thirst, therefore is killed. I don't want to harm her, maybe turn her."

"A mate then."

"Pardon?"

"Maybe she's your mate. A vampire's mate doesn't necessarily have to be another vampire. Look at Aro and Sulpicia, Edward Cullen and his mate."

"I don't know what that Edward sees in his mate. The girl is so dull and submissive."

"Submissive is very good. I know of submissive chores I can have her do."

"We can never say that you lack imagination, Felix. Now if only you can find a good woman to help you put that imagination into use."

"Don't start with me, Demetri. Heidi is my mate."

"No she isn't, old friend. Even though I support you in whatever you do, I will not have you suicidal over this woman. Our friendship means to much to me to let that happen."

"When will you head out?"

"When the sun sets. If you don't have plans, you're free to join me."

"I think that I will. I most definitely need to meet your future mate."

Back in the restaurant, Simon finishes eating his second plate of fettuccini alfredo while Lorraine looks on with disgust.

"Now that hits the spot!" Simon exclaims triumphal.

"That hits the spot? I thought the soup, bread stick and shrimp alfredo would have done it."

"No, those were just appetizers."

"How can you eat all that and not gain one pound and I'm on a diet and I've gained twenty? How is that humanly possible?"

"A) We just came back from Miami and you ate a bunch of Haitian food."

"My Lord I can't say no to akra, griyo and bannan peze! Oh and the pikliz! Oh and the cola courone!"

"You just gained ten pounds from thinking about all of that. B) Even though I ate the same amount, I still exercised. You didn't."

"Oh and the cremas!"

"And here we go! Another five pounds. And with you bringing two bottles back with you, I'm sure you're drinking five glasses per night!"

"Sadly, I don't. I'm saving them for when I feel romantic or if it's cold."

"You always feel romantic."

"No, I don't. I always feel horny. There's a difference, my good man!"

"I don't want to think about you in that mood. I'm subjected to it all the time. No! Stop! Please!"

"Such a dam divo! Anyhow let's get back to topic. What do we have so far?"

"We have Valentina missing, her workplace, her supposed resignation, Santiago and her belongings. I think that we should check her belongings."

"I agree but honestly Simon I feel completely uncomfortable not only in going back there but also going into the elevators. I feel like something bad will happen the moment we step into those damn elevators."

"So how will we get them then?"

"I don't know. We'll think of something."

"Since her work is a dead-end, I say we go visit her different lovers, which will probably take us a month."

"True and I only know the address of five of them."

"And ninety percent of them are either married or have significant others." Simon reminded her. "Lorraine, honestly I don't know how you're friends with this girl. You're her total opposite."

"You're her friend too."

"Because of you!"

"Listen, people have different personalities. She marched to the beat of her own drums."

"Listen, there's such a thing has standing out and having personality. I'm not against that. But when over half of your lovers, that you have at the same time may I add, are attached men then something is wrong. Lorraine, you're forgetting that this girl who you're willing to look for as far as the end of the world screwed you over."

"I know but Simon, remember her childhood…"

"Lorraine, she fucked two of your boyfriends and was about to fuck the third one until you caught them! Fuck her childhood, Valentina is a complete bitch! She is a bad friend and a backstabbing bitch! I know this, and you know this but won't admit it. I have a question for you."

"What?"

"Why are we the only ones looking for her?"

"What?"

"Why are we the only ones looking for her?"

"Because I'm her roommate and closest friend. So I quickly noticed that she was gone."

"Fine, I'll grant you that one. But you've called other people right? You've asked around and told them of your worry, right?"

"Yes."

"Why aren't they here helping us? Have one of them called to ask if she's returned?" Simon's questions were met with silent answers. "Exactly. No one. Why? Because the girl didn't know what friendship was. She used all of her friends to get ahead and now no one cares about what happened to her. I'm willing to help you. You know that I am, but we need to keep in mind the type of life that she led. What if she did leave without telling you because she's that selfish? Wouldn't be the first time she was selfish with you."

"And what if something happened to her?"

"True. What if one of her lovers' wife caught them and did something? That is a possibility. And she would have deserved it."

"No one deserves to be hurt or killed, Simon."

"I agree but remember to every action there's a reaction. If I come home and see my wife with another man, best believe that I will react and I won't react nicely."

"I agree, she didn't live a life of sainthood but nonetheless she's a friend, she's human and she might need help."

"Once more, I agree but what I'm trying to say is let's not make a saint out of a sinner. We need to remember the kind of girl that she is. She might be in Ibiza with one of her lovers for all we know."

"I think that our next logical step is to go to the police."

"The police we shall go!"

* Please review and let me know what you think. Thank you! *


	3. Chapter 3

When Lorraine and Simon left the police station it was already five o'clock but dark outside. It took them hours to file a missing persons report. The streets were active in Volterra at this time of day, people were happy to either go home or go to happy hour with their friends and coworkers. However, Lorraine didn't feel like having any type of fun so she parted ways with Simon to go to her apartment. It didn't take long to reach her place. Lorraine's apartment complex was one of the most "modern" apartment complexes because it had an elevator, which is helpful with the groceries since she lives on the fourth floor. The fourth floor was considered the perfect floor because it was high enough for a good view yet low enough to still be able to see the passers-by from the balcony.

Once Lorraine got into her apartment, she felt at peace. She loved having fun and hanging out with her few friends, but she mostly preferred staying home. The apartment was a medium size one: it is a two bedroom two bathroom with the bathrooms located in each of the bedrooms. Lorraine's bedroom was in brick but painted white. It was a medium size room with a queen size bed bordered by two bed-stands on each side and a TV across from the bed. The bathroom was painted baby blue, and was standard with a sink with storage cabinets underneath it, a tub, a toilet bowl and a medicine cabinet. The part that Lorraine loved the most was the balcony: two French doors opened to the balcony, it wasn't big enough to have chairs and a table, but she did put some cushions on the floor to sit on and gaze either at the stars or at the pedestrians. Her bedroom wasn't anything fancy but it was home and that in itself made it special.

Lorraine was about to get undressed to take a shower when her phone rang. It was her mother FaceTiming her, which wasn't odd in itself but it was already midnight in Florida.

"Hey mom, what are you still doing up?"

"What's going on Lorraine? What's happening with Valentina?"

"Valentina's missing, but how did you know something was going on?"

"Because I just saw her in the kitchen."

"Wait, you saw her or you "saw" her?"

"I "saw" her."

"Mom, you can only see spirits, so if you "saw" Valentina that means..."

"That she's dead, yes." Lorraine's mom, Athena, finished her daughter's sentence with a shaky voice. Lorraine, Valentina and Simon have known each other since middle school but Simon and Lorraine knew each other since birth. To Athena loosing Valentina felt like loosing a member of the family.

Lorraine was completely shocked. She was truly hoping that Valentina was in one of her adventures but deep down she knew that it was more serious. However, she never once fathomed that it was that serious.

"What exactly did you see, Mom?"

"I just saw a glimpse of her. It was a full body appearance but it was for a second or so."

"She went missing two days ago but, mom, I had a feeling all last week that something was going to happen, like I don't know how to explain it but I've been having dreams. You know when you know that the dream is real? Like it's going to come true?"

"I do."

"That's how I felt and I still feel that way."

"Sweetie, you've always known that you and Simon have been blessed with supernatural gifts, so it's completely normal for you to know when something is up. But listen, when I saw Valentina, I called Minerva and we decided to book tickets to Volterra. We're coming next Friday. We need to bring you kids somewhere." Athena informed her. Minerva was Simon's mother. Minerva and Athena are best friends and grew up together. Just like Athena, Minerva also has supernatural abilities.

"Where do you need to take us?" Lorraine asks.

"We'll tell you once we get there but look I want the both of you to start cleansing. Cleans the apartments and yourselves, do you remember how?"

"Yes, of course. But mom, I feel like you're hiding something from me, like there's something more."

"There is but once we get there, we'll talk in details. Okay, baby?"

"Cool, I'll text Simon and let him know. I don't have the ingredients so I'll go to the market tomorrow to get them. I'll take Simon with me because I'm sure that he doesn't have them either."

"Sounds good baby. I think that Minerva will call him tomorrow. I'm going to bed so we'll talk okay. Love you."

"Love you too, Mom."

"Don't forget to prepare! Friday is in seven days, that is seven days of cleansing the body through vegetables and fruits, prayers and meditation, bright colored cloths and so on."

"Mom, I know. We've done it before. I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

"Okay. Love you!"

"Love you too, Mom."

After hanging up with her mom, she quickly texted Simon asking him to meet her at the market place at ten am. Then, she goes to take a shower to rid herself from the terrible day. But before getting in, she remembered that she had some rosemary in the kitchen, so she quickly gets some, mixes it with some warm water in a bucket to rinse herself with. Once done with the shower, she does her nightly beauty ritual of putting shea butter on her lips and acne and poor reducing medicine on her face. Lorraine had a love and hate relationship with her skin. She had acne prone skin on her face and back and stretched marks on her sides due to being heavy as a child. But she knew that she was beautiful even though she often wished that she had perfect skin like other women her age. 'Oh well' She thought, 'that's life.' She then puts the towel back on the rack, and walks to her closet naked to get her T-shirt not knowing that she was being watched.

Once she was dressed, she went under the covers and started making a list of everything that she needed for her cleansing. Once that was done she watched TV until she could no longer keep her lids open, then turned it off to go to sleep.

When she was in deep sleep, Demetri and Felix made their way from the opposite building and into her apartment through the French doors. They explored the entire apartment, starting with Valentina's bedroom; they needed to make sure that she didn't bring anything that would reveal the existence of the Volturri. While searching, Demetri caught the smell of rosemary coming from Lorraine's room, so he made his way there, and what he saw paralyzed him: Lorraine was on her bed under her white covers, fast asleep, with the moonlight shining over her. When they had entered through her bedroom, Demetri was so focused on the issue of Valentina that he didn't even notice Lorraine on her bed. She looked like an oil painting created by a master painter. Her hair was spread all over the pillow, and the combination of the moonlight and the white pillow made her hair even redder. He was mesmerized by the sight, he wanted to feel her skin under his bare hand so he takes of his right glove to caress her face, and he wasn't disappointed.

As he was caressing her face, suddenly she moved her hand upward only to rest it on Demetri's hand. Lorraine now was subconsciously caressing his hand. She then takes it and puts it on her chest, in between her breasts. She does this smiling. That was such an intimate gesture that Demetri dared not move fearing that such an act wouldn't happen again. He stayed immobile for what seemed like hours, and that's exactly how Felix found him. Felix was watching the scene intently; feeling like he was invading an intimate moment but noticing that Demetri didn't even sense him. They should search her room as well, but Felix felt that would be invading Demetri's privacy, even though this wasn't his room.

"Demetri, have you searched the room?" He asks knowing that the answer was negative.

"Not yet, but we should." Demetri responds still looking at Lorraine and not making a move. Felix took this as his cue to search the room himself, so he did.

"Demetri, there's nothing in this room or the apartment. We should leave."

"You may go, Felix. I'll stay here just a bit longer." And with that, Felix leaves his friend with who he thinks is his mate.

* I apologize for the length. *

* Please review/comment *


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey! Over here!" Simon calls out to Lorraine in the market.

"Hey." Lorraine greets him happily with a hug and kiss on the cheek. "Did you talk to your mother?"

"Yup, she called me at eight last night. I had a feeling that it was pretty bad for Valentina but I didn't think it would have reached so far."

"Did she tell you anything else?"

"No, but she did say that they have to take us somewhere and tell us something. She was being all mysterious and shit."

"So was my mom. She told you about the cleansing?"

"Sadly, yes. I'm always near death when we do these damn cleansings!"

"In the beginning you are, but after you have more energy and you always promise to keep it up, well that is until you see a burger."

"Listen, let's start tomorrow and let's make today a food fest! Let's go all out! Eat, eat and eat some more!"

"In other words, let's just get sick."

"Oh come on! It's going to be fun! Oh and we can make it a movie night later on! Please! Please!"

"Fine! But if I get sick, you're going to come over and take care of me."

"Yes! Let's just get the ingredients, put them back in our apartments and just have a fun Saturday!"

"I don't know how fun I'm going to be after finding out about Valentina."

"Babe," Simon said while looking straight into Lorraine's eyes, "her death, anyone's death, is sad. Even though I didn't like her whatsoever, I feel sad for her, for her family and for you. But we need to live, besides wouldn't she want that? The girl was a partier and liked having fun, so we're doing this in memory of her?"

"Really Simon?"

"Really! So turn that frown upside down and let's wait for the mothers to get here. Okay?"

"Fine."

"Pinky-swear?" Simon asks while putting his pinky out.

"Pinky-swear." Lorraine says as she intertwines her pinky with his.

"But, I have to say something. For someone who just received bad news you look rested and kina cheerful."

"Can I tell you that last night was the first time that I had such a peaceful sleep? I felt so happy and rested when I woke up this morning."

"Well that's good!"

"I also had such a wonderful dream!"

"What about?"

"Let's just say that I had a very wonderful night, if you catch my drift." she responded with a wink.

"Okay, now I really don't want to know."

"Ha! Let's go get the ingredients!"

"What do we need?"

"Here's the list."

"So here we go! Let's cross our fingers that we don't die."

The market was set up like a flea market, outdoors with different stands. So the duo took their time to smell and haggle their way to the best fruits and vegetables. The outdoor markets have always been their favorite place to shop because it reminded them of the farmers markets in South Florida. They have lived in Italy for eight years but in Volterra for six. They do miss their family but the move was the best decision possible. Both Lorraine and Simon fathers left their mothers for other women while pregnant, and their stepfathers were terrible. However, they did not have bad childhoods; their mothers loved them and protected them as best as they could. Because of their stepfathers, Simon and Lorraine had made a pact since entering high school. They would take college courses so they could graduate with both their high school diplomas and their bachelors. And that's exactly what they did. Lorraine graduated with her high school diploma and a duel major in International Relations and Languages, focusing in Chinese, Arabic and Italian. Lorraine's next-door neighbors influenced her choice in languages because she had Chinese, Moroccan and Italian neighbors; all speaking to her in their native tongues. Three months before graduation she applied and got a job at the American Embassy in Florence, Italy because that's where Simon had gotten his job. Simon graduated with his high school diploma and a double major in International Relations and Economics. Once he knew that graduation was set, Simon quickly started job hunting but his gut feeling was telling him to go to Italy, so he started looking in Italy and quickly found a vacancy.

Once they were in Florence, they were in heaven. The culture and the language were simply breathtaking to Lorraine, while the food and wine were heaven to Simon. However, they soon realized how expensive Florence was and decided to move in together into this tiny two-bedroom apartment with one bathroom. Two years after moving to Florence, Simon's job transferred him to Volterra and Lorraine decided to follow. She was able to get a transfer to an extension of the Embassy that was 30 min from Volterra. Because Volterra was cheaper than Florence, they were able to get their own apartments walking distance from each other. And the rest is history. Italy became their home, they've never looked back, only visited their parents for major holidays and for a brief time.

"Praise the good Lord, we are done! And it "only" took us five hours! Who grocery shops for five hours?" Simon complains.

"But it was worth it. Now let's put this stuff away and we can meet up somewhere."

"How about La Dolce Casa?" Simon eagerly suggests.

"La Dolce Casa it is! Let's say we meet at 5? Time to put the stuff away and change into some nice clothes?"

"Agreed!"

They quickly parted ways. Once Lorraine got to her apartment, she quickly stored the food away and took a shower. Since tonight was a special occasion in a sense, 'Before Doomsday' Simon would call it, she decided to dress up and wear make up. She went all out on the makeup since the weather was quite cool. She firstly puts her primer all over her face and then her foundation with her fingers instead of a brush. She then does her eye in a smoky manner but with lilac eye shadow not black since her mother stated that black made her look like a coldhearted hooker; she added a purple eyeliner and voluminous mascara to finish her eyes. For her lips, she opted for dark red matte lipstick. She then went to her closet to find something cute to wear. She knew that she had to wear flats because they were going to be bar hopping in a sense, 'Maybe small wedges?' she thought. She then suddenly squeals with excitement when she finds a navy jumpsuit that she had bought a year ago and a pair of black wedges with a band around the ankles. After dressing, she looked at herself in the mirror and she was satisfied. She grabbed her red envelope purse and headed out to La Dolce Casa.

As she arrived, she could see Simon standing and waiting. This made her laugh because she knew that there isn't anything in this world that could come between Simon and food. He had on nice black jeans with a forest green sweater with collar and greyish jacket.

"Hey handsome." Lorraine greeted him.

"Handsome huh?"

"Extremely handsome." She had always known that Simon was beautiful but he had never seen himself in that light.

"Well darling, if I'm handsome that you are a goddess and that jumpsuit." He whistles at her, "But seriously, you look gorgeous."

"Why thank you kind sir. I know that I was going to see you so I had to up my game."

To an outsider, the duo seemed like a beautiful couple in love but the simple truth is that they saw each other as best friends, the brother and sister that they never had. And they were grateful for it.

"Let's sit outside." Simon recommends.

"I agree. It feels so good and we can people watch."

"Your favorite pastime."

They waited to be seated. When they sat down, it was near the streets

"What are you getting?" She asks him.

"We should get something light because we're going other places."

"A salad then?"

"Let's not talk crazy talk now. How about soup with breadstick and chocolate." Soup and breadstick are what they ordered, and as usual the conversation was flowing. They talked about everything and anything, and didn't even notice the night creeping in.

"Good evening, Lorraine." Lorraine turns around to see not only who called her but also who had that deep voice.

"Demetri." She answers.

"You remember my name. I feel flattered." Then looks at Simon, "My apologies, I didn't mean to interrupt your date."

"It's not a date." Simon says, "And you're not interrupting anything. I would ask you to join us but we're going to another restaurant. You can come with, if you want."

"I really wouldn't want to impose."

"Not at all." Lorraine insisted.

"Well then, I shall follow."

"I apologize for Lorraine for anything that she does tonight." Simon says.

"Excuse me?" Lorraine reacts.

Simon looks at Demetri, points at Lorraine and does a drinking motion.

"Bro, I'll claw you!"

"See what I mean."

Demetri was looking at their interaction closely to understand if they were a couple or not. To him it felt like a friendly banter between friends and Simon did clear state that he was not on a date. Also, he's never heard a woman refer to her significant other as 'bro', but in this day and age, one never knows.

"Demetri, let's forget Simon and go to the next restaurant ourselves." Lorraine says before sticking her tongue out to Simon.

"Let us go then." Demetri gives her his arm and she takes it, and they start walking.

"Now, I'm hurt." Simon voices, "Demetri, I was protecting you and now you've betrayed me. If we were in the old days, I would have challenged you to a duel!"

"And you would have lost since you've been drinking." Lorraine reminded him.

As they were searching for their next restaurant to indulge in, they spot this nightclub. The walls of the club were jet black while the sign that was on it, Il Diavolo Tana, was in blood red.

"Let's go here!" Lorraine yells out.

"You want to go to a place called The Devil's Lair?" Simon asked.

"Yes!"

"Woman are you mad? This is against our spiritual beliefs! And you say that I'm tipsy!"

"It is simply the name of the discoteca." Demetri reminds him.

"That's the spirit Demetri!" Lorraine says, "Let's go!" She says while dragging Demetri by the arm.

"It's not a restaurant, Lorraine." Simon reminds her.

"The discoteca will have food, Simon." She reminds him.

As they got closer to the door, they realized that two men dressed in black were guarding it. The door itself was black with very odd symbols that ornate it, and its handle was black as well with red writing on it but Lorraine couldn't distinguish the language.

"Excuse me, what does it say on the handle?" Lorraine inquires to the two men in black.

"You see words?" One of the men asks her.

"How about those symbols? They look so cool." Simon says to them.

"You see symbols?" The other man in black responds.

"There is nothing there." Demetri says.

"Interesting." Both men say simultaneously. "Enjoy." One of them says as they open the door, while the other one adds, "Remember, when you're lost, that's when you are found."


	5. Chapter 5

The club was jammed pack.

"Hold hands so we don't get separated!" Simon yells out since the music was so loud. Simon held Lorraine's hand, who in turn held Demetri's. That night Demetri purposefully did not wear gloves just to able to touch Lorraine, and now he had the opportunity without looking suspicious or perverted.

The club had two levels. The bottom had the bar to the left, the dancing floor in the middle, some dancing poles on tables, and some cages. The top had tables where people were eating and so they followed that direction. The bottom was connected to the top by a swirling staircase. The staircase was black and was inscribed in red with the same symbols and writing as outside. Lorraine and Simon both touched the writing and symbols respectively, and at the touch they changed from red to white.

"That is so cool!" Simon exclaims.

"I wonder how they did that?" Lorraine asks.

"Did what? What are you talking about?" Demetri inquires.

"The writing and the symbols." Lorraine answers while pointing at them. "See, they changed colors."

"I see nothing." Demetri says and stops for a second, "What have you had to drink?" He wonders if it was the alcohol that was giving them hallucinations.

"Maybe it's too dark for you to see." She responds, which earned her a smirk.

As they walked on the staircase, the symbols and writing were changing with each step. At the top, they were met with two more bouncers in black.

"Dude, how did you make them light up like that?" Simon asks them.

"He means the writing and symbols. And what language is the writing?" Lorraine adds. Both men exchanged a knowing look and smiled; however, when they looked at Demetri, they frowned.

"Now what are you doing here?" One of the bouncers asks Demetri.

"He's with us." Simon and Lorraine simultaneously say.

"Yup, they're definitely new." One of the men says.

"But we think that it's cute to have a pet. You may enter with your pet." The other says.

"Don't fucking talk to my friend like that! Apologize or I'll have to meet you guys outside to teach you manners!" Lorraine shouts with rage. This surprised Demetri and both men, but Simon was used to her and just smiled. For some reason the bouncers seemed frightened by her outburst.

"We apologize, sir." They say to Demitri, "It will not happen again." And they let them through without any problem.

"Homegirl, you kick some serious ass!" Simon tells her with pride.

"You know! We can't let them pick on the kid." She answers.

"Pardon, am I meant to be the kid?"Demetri asks.

"Yes!" They both answered. They chose an empty table by the railings in the back. The table was in wood with glass for the top and one gargoyle as its leg. On the table, there was a red gothic lamp shaped as one of the symbols seen on the staircase. Demetri strategically placed himself in the corner, with Lorraine to his left and Simon to Lorraine's left. He was scouting out the crowd to see if there was anything out of the ordinary since his company was acting out of the ordinary: Lorraine and Simon seeing writings and symbols that weren't there, not to mention the bouncers being overall bizarre. As he looked down at the dance floor, everyone seemed fine; they were dancing, laughing, some were drinking in the bar, some were making out, and in the darker corners some were fucking. He then turns to his present company and they were both looking at the menu. He took this chance to analyze Lorraine. He already knew of her rich auburn hair and hazel eyes, but tonight she showed courage and accepted him as a friend. She actually defended him, which was odd because it was the second time that they have met and the first time that they actually spoke. Maybe it was the alcohol? He truly didn't care because it made him feel heat, which was something that he hadn't felt in ages. He also approved of her makeup, the lilac made her eyes pop while her red lips just scream at him to kiss her. As he turned to scrutinize Simon, he couldn't help but notice a man staring at Lorraine, more specifically at her cleavage. As he was about to make eye contact with the pervert, Lorraine puts her hand on his.

"What are you eating Demetri?" She asks.

"Nothing, I've eaten already."

"Dude, we can always spot you. No worries." Simon adds.

"Thank you. That is kind but I honestly ate already."

"Well you have to drink something with us. It's our last night of freedom!" Simon tells him.

"Last night of freedom?" Demetri frowns at that.

"What my best friend is trying to say is that we're going to have to go on a restrictive diet tomorrow, so tonight we're going to severely exaggerate our eating and drinking. Aren't we, Simon?" Lorraine explains to Demetri.

"How long will this last?" Demetri asks.

"Only seven days." Lorraine answers.

"Which is like forever!" Simon specifies. "By the way, I'm getting the skewered stake with guacamole and fries, and a coke for now."

"For now? Simon, I know this should be the big hurrah but that's too much. You'll really get sick." Lorraine reminds him.

"And you'll be there to take care of me as usual! What are you going to get?"

"Demetri, what do you think I should get?" She asks him.

"And no salads!" Simon quickly adds.

"Yes, no salads." She reinforces.

"Well since you've made it clear that salads should not be involved, I suggest the Red Wine-Marinated Escargot Over Bowtie Pasta."

"No escargot, thank you very much!" Lorraine quickly objects.

"It tastes just like chicken, Lorraine. Try it." Simon insists.

"No! Give me another one Demetri."

"Then the Cappon Magro."

"Is that your favorite dish?" Lorraine asks him.

"I have never tasted it but I did love seafood." Demetri tells her.

"You did love? So you don't love it anymore?" She inquires.

"I have a diet that denies me any seafood."

"Ah okay."

The waiter comes to their table.

"Buenasera, are you ready to order?"

"Yes!" Simon quickly answers, "I will have the skewed steak with fries and the red wine marinated escargot and the Cappon Magro please."

"Simon!" Lorraine chastises him. "You're going to be sick!"

"I am a growing boy! My mother says so! Order woman, so the food can come out faster!"

"Fine! I'll have the Cappon Magro please."

"Very good." The waiter says, "Would you like a bottle of wine to start with?"

"Yes, the Sassicaia please." That was Lorraine's favorite wine.

"Signora has good taste. It will be out shortly."

"Thank you!" Simon always had a tendency to be nice to the waiters and waitresses out of fear of spitting in his food.

"Demetri." Lorraine starts

"Yes?"

"For some reason I get a Greek vibe from you, not an Italian one."

"I would say a city close to the sea." Simon chips in.

This took Demetri completely by surprise. He had lived in Italy for centuries and had interacted, albeit very little, with humans and none ever guessed his native country. Not even the vampires knew.

"What gave it away?" Demetri asks intriguingly.

Lorraine and Simon just looked at each other and shrugged.

"I don't know." Simon says nonchalantly.

"I just had a feeling, that's all." Lorraine answers.

"I am from Thessaloniki."

"No! We visited there last year! Remember Simon?"

"How can I forget? That's where I ate the best lobster known to mankind!"

"Of course that's why you remember it!" She smacks Simon's arm. "We visited the White Tower! What a scary history!"

"It was the Red Tower at first due to all of the killings but when Greece acquired it, it became the White Tower." Demetri proudly explains.

"Yes, that's what the tour guide told us." The conversation between the trio was flowing so well that they didn't even notice the bottle of wine appearing on the table. Next, the food came out and not a peep was heard from Simon. The food was delicious, Simon was trying to get Lorraine to taste the escargot but that was not happening. And even though Simon had ordered the same dish as Lorraine, he still ate from her plate. Demetri noticed all of their interactions and realize how easy they were to be around. Demetri recognized that Simon was only a friend to Lorraine, so he didn't have to kill him.

"Let's go dancing!" Lorraine screams on top of her lungs once she's done eating.

"Okay sweetie, no more wine for you." Simon slowly slides the wine bottle away from her.

"Come on boys! The music is vibing!"

"I don't dance." Demetri tells her.

"Neither do I." Simon adds.

Lorraine grabs both their hands and drags them to the dance floor. She started dancing to the beat of the music, Simon started jumping around and Demetri was just bopping his head as to not look out of place. They were like this on the dance floor for a solid hour when the music suddenly changed. The sound was out of this world: the only way to describe it was like a slow techno music that just makes you want to grind. Lorraine looked at Simon and he was dancing with a stranger, so she pulled Demetri to her and started dancing with him.

Her arms were around his neck and her chin lying on his shoulder, while his arms were around her waist. He was in heaven. She was so close to him that he could smell every inch of her body: her hair, her sweat, and her breath. He could feel her heartbeat as well. Without realizing it, he was pulling her closer until there was absolutely no distance between them. Her hips were gyrating against his as thought she was trying to get off, her nails were now scraping the back oh his neck and pulling some hair as well; her face slowly turned to his neck, she wanted to smell his natural scent. Her breath on his neck triggered an animalistic response in him and he started to growl. She heard him so she overtly amplified her gestures. Demetri started digging his nails into her skin. It took every fiber of his being not to throw her on the floor and fuck her into oblivion. He took a deep breath as to control himself, he desperately wanted to taste her but her bare shoulders were not helping his control. As he was taking his unnecessary breaths, she does something unexpected: she bites his neck and suckles his skin. She doesn't have the proper strength to break his skin but the action feels amazing. His eyes roll back in his head and he moans loudly. One hand goes to the back of her head and pushes her head further, while the other one grabbed an ass cheek. Without anyone noticing, especially Simon, he moves them to the dark side of the dance floor. There, he pulls her away from his neck and starts kissing her fiercely, this time with one hand holding her hair while the other one is on her waist pulling her further into him. They wanted more of each other, their gestures were becoming more erratic, their hands were trying to find more skin to caress, and they were oblivious to the world around them.

"Scusate!" Yelled the man who broke their trance by bumping into them. They stopped kissing but were still intensely looking at each other. Both mute, both wanting to continue but both realizing that they were out in the open.

"We need to find Simon." Lorraine tells him and drags him back to the dance floor. It didn't take long to find him.

"Yo, I was looking for you guys. We need to leave." Simon tells them.

"What happened?" Lorraine asks.

"Nothing but something is up Lorraine. The bouncers upstairs haven't stopped looking at us ever since we got to the dance floor." Simon explains. Lorraine and Demetri look up and realize that the bouncers were staring at them.

"We better go." Lorraine says and the trio makes their way out of the club.

"Goodbye Lorraine." One of the bouncers outside says.

"Goodbye, Simon." The other adds.

"Do come visit us again." Both say simultaneously.

"How did you know our names?" Lorraine asks but gets no response. Both bouncers simply smile at them.

Lorraine hears a whistle and realizes that Simon whistled a cab.

"Get in." Simon tells Lorraine and Demetri and they do as they're told. Once in the car, Lorraine was seated in between Simon and Demetri, holding Demetri's hand throughout the ride.


	6. Chapter 6

The taxi drops them in front of Lorraine's apartment complex.

"Simon, I think that it would be best if you stayed at my place tonight." Lorraine says.

"Sweetie, I'm okay and my apartment is right there. Besides, I'm not going to sleep in a dead girl's bedroom." He responds.

"Valentina is dead?" Demetri asks knowing perfectly well that it's true since he was the one who killed her.

"Yes." Lorraine answers.

"How did you find out? Do you know what happened?" Demetri continues to inquire.

"Let's just say that we have our sources." Simon simply says. "Dude, I am so sorry that I let the cab go. I didn't even ask it to drop you home. I apologize, I didn't mean to be rude."

"Not at all, my friend. I do not live that far and I can walk home."

"Not on my watch, mister!" Lorraine counters, "You can come to the apartment and I'll call you a cab. It's passed midnight and I don't care how tough you think you are, you're not walking home by yourself."

"Bro, the chic is bossy just go along with it. It'll be less painful." Simon teases. He then kisses Lorraine on both cheeks, shakes Demetri's hands and walks to his apartment. Lorraine keeps her eyes on him until he was no longer visible. Then she leads the way to her apartment. As they make their way up, it hits Lorraine: she made out with this man on the dance floor and now he's in her apartment. 'Act cool, girl' she thinks to herself.'

"Sorry for the mess." She says about the clean apartment.

"I do not see the mess that you are referring to. Your apartment is clean and smells like rosemary."

"You can smell the rosemary? I took a rosemary shower last night. Now, about that cab."

"Lorraine, I am perfectly fine walking home."

"Demetri, it's midnight. It's dangerous. I honestly don't feel comfortable you walking alone. I will pay for the cab."

"No. If you wish I can call a friend to pick me up."

"At this time? Will he be mad?"

"Not at all. I have done this for him in the past." Demetri lies to her and feels terrible. But it was a necessary lie, one of plenty if he's honest.

However, Lorraine is oblivious to this. She purposefully said "he" to make sure that the friend was a man and she was right. As childish as it sounds, it would have disturbed her if a woman came to pick Demetri up at this time.

"My room is over there, you'll find a phone." And with that Demetri disappears.

Meanwhile, Lorraine goes to the fridge to get them some bottle of water to help with the amount of alcohol that they drank earlier. However, she realizes that not only didn't Demetri drink anything, he didn't eat anything either. "Maybe, I can fix him something." She mumbles to herself.

"Fix me what?" Demetri asks. This startles Lorraine who quickly turns around and bumps into him.

"I apologize. I did not mean to scare you."

"You didn't scare me. I was startled."

"I am sorry."

"Not at all. No, I was saying to myself that you didn't eat or drink anything at the restaurant. I can fix you something if you want."

"My diet is specific and you don't have the ingredients necessary. But thank you. You are very selfless."

"For wanting to cook for you? Not at all."

"But you are. You defended me at the club when you didn't have to."

"I did actually. You're a friend. So it's my responsibility to look after your well being."

"I'm your friend even after the dance floor? Do you "dance" like that with Simon as well?"

"No! Not at all. I just…" Lorraine didn't know what to say. They were friends but she doesn't make out with all of her friends, but can she establish them as "more than friends"? What exactly would a "more than friends" person be? Lorraine felt overwhelmed by her senses and tries to stabilize herself by holding on to the counter. However, she didn't notice the knife and cut her finger.

The scent of Lorraine's blood hit Demetri like a tone of bricks. His eyes became darker; the venom was building up in his mouth as a way of getting ready to kill the prey. His eyes were locked on to hers as he slowly makes his way to her. When he reached her, he was so close that he could feel her breathing yet far enough as not to touch.

"May I taste you?" he asks her in a husky voice. He needed to talk to her, to make sure that she wasn't afraid. It was also a form of control, controlling the vampire to not attack the human.

"What?"

"Your blood. May I taste it?"

"Yes," her response barely audible.

He takes her finger and slowly puts it in his mouth. He was savoring the blood as if it was his first time tasting his favorite dish. He wanted more but he didn't want to hurt her in the process. His eyes still boring into hers, he takes the knife, turns her face so he can have access to her neck. He chose the area where her neck meets her shoulder, and slightly scratches her. She whimpers.

"I will not harm you, αγάπη μου*." Then, he deeps his head to lick the droplets of blood.

Lorraine moans loudly and grabs on to his shoulders as to avoid falling. She pushes his head further and whispers to his ear, "Please, bite me".

It took every once in Demetri's body not to bite her, but he wanted to satisfy her.

"Please Demetri. Bite me." She begs a second time.

He grabs her hair with one hand and digs his nails in her lower back in the other, and starts sucking hard on a patch of skin from her neck. He wanted to trigger 'gentle' pain in different areas as a way of satisfying her.

Lorraine started moaning loudly and arching her neck to give him more access to skin.

After a couple of minutes, Demetri pushes himself away from her neck and looks at her. He could hear her heartbeat pumping fast and hard, he could smell her arousal, and her pupils were diluted. The gentleman in him was telling him to walk away, but the animal was telling him to continue marking his territory. He was breathing hard, he was shaking, he was loosing to the animal.

Lorraine saw that he was distracted and made a move to kiss him. This startled him. The kiss started out as soft and explorative only to become heated within a couple of seconds. Demetri lifted her up so she could encircle her legs around him. He then walks to her bedroom and sits there with her in top of him, frantically kissing each other. He finally rolls her over on to her back to continue the make out session. She was taking his jacket and shirt off, but he didn't have time to be polite so he just ripped the jumpsuit off. His animalistic side was turning Lorraine on and she couldn't come back from it.

He was topless on the bed, while she was in her panties and bra. Simultaneously, he slightly bites her nipple through her bra and rubs her clit through her panties.

"Arghhhhhhhhh!" She moans loudly and arches her back for more. She then unbuttons and unzips his pants. She reaches in and grabs Demetri's shaft. Demetri suddenly stops moving and looks at her. His eyes dark and his expression lustful. She continued stroking him and licking his lips with her tongue, daring him to come all over her hands.

Demetri felt like he was near, so he grabs her neck with one hand and squeeze her until he finally came all over her hand. She than takes the hand, and starts licking his come off. As she's doing that, he pushes he panties to the side and penetrates two fingers inside of her. He is pumping his fingers and looking at her, it was his turn to enjoy the view. It didn't take long for her to come, and what a sight. She was screaming, the veins were showing and her head was moving from side to side. But importantly, she was screaming his name. That sight alone made him hard again.

Quickly, he replaced his fingers with his dick and Lorraine felt the difference to the point that her eyes were bulging out. He let the animal take over and it had no mercy on her body. He was on top of her, fucking her into an abyss that she didn't want to leave, he was growling next to her ear, grabbing and pulling her hair. She was scratching his back and biting his neck.

Lorraine came first with a fury and then Demetri, but unbeknown to Lorraine, as Demetri was coming he was biting her inner cheeks instead of biting her.

As their body slowly stopped convulsing, Demetri rolled off of her but made sure that her head was resting on his shoulder. A couple of minutes passed and her breathing went back to normal.

"Did I hurt you?" he asks.

"No. It was wonderful. I've never done this before."

"Done what? You were not a virgin, were you? I did hurt you then!"

"No, no Demetri. What I meant was that I've never had a one night stand."

Suddenly Demetri went from lying to siting on the bed. "You do not wish to see me after this?"

"I do. But I know how men are, so I wasn't putting my hopes on it."

"This is going to sound cheesy like you Americans like to say. The day that I met you, I couldn't stop thinking about you. I do not know what, but I knew that there would be something more. I have to confess tonight did not go as plan. I did not plan it to go that far."

"It was the blood. You changed when you saw the blood; your eyes became darker. I noticed it again when we made love." She said as she caressed his back.

"Yes, the blood was what triggered me. I am sorry."

"Why apologize? I don't have a problem with it."

"I do not want this to be a one night stand. If you do not mind, I would prefer something proper and official. A courtship. I have not had a woman in a long time, so I'm rusty at this."

"You're my second lover, so I'm not experienced at all."

"I would have preferred you never having a lover, but that is fine."

She sits up and kisses him lightly on the lips.

"I believe in monogamy," she starts, "meaning that if you want a proper courtship, you're courting me and only me."

"I do not want anyone else. So yes, it will be you." He leans over and kisses her on the lips. "Lorraine, I do not take this lightly. I am a serious man and I do not give up easily."

"I'm not taking this lightly either. As I told you, I've never done anything like this."

'And you never will. I'm the only one who'll ever touch you.' Demetri said to himself. "Promise me that you'll get to know me."

"I promise."

"One more thing, promise me that you'll never be afraid of me."

Lorraine felt like that was a warning but said the words either way, "I promise."

*Please leave a comment/review! Thank you!*


	7. Chapter 7

_Lorraine was walking in a field where the fog was so thick that she couldn't see her own hands, but she knew where she was going. She was going to Valentina. She could feel her essence with every step, but with every step she also felt dread. She suddenly stops: there was Valentina. She was smiling, had her hair down as if lounging at home, and she was wearing a white dress._

 _Lorraine was happy to see her old friend again and wanted to run to her but feared if she made the slightest move, Valentina would vanish._

 _"_ _I miss you so much." Lorraine tells her friend, "What happened?" she asks, "Where's your body?"_

 _Valentina's smile then faded away as she slowly lifts her arm to point at a direction. Lorraine turns her head to look and screams at what she saw: Valentina being held down on the floor by a faceless man with brown hair. He had his hand around her neck and seemed like he was biting her. Blood was dripping from her neck to her white dress that started changing from white to red._

 _"_ _Stop! You're hurting her! Why are you hurting her! Who are you? Valentina, who is he?" As Lorraine keeps on looking at the scene, she sees Valentina trying to tell her the name of the man murdering her but no sound was coming out of her mouth. Lorraine then started running to her friend's aid still screaming for him to let Valentina go._

"Lorraine! Lorraine! Wake up, you're having a nightmare." Demetri says as she shakes her.

She quickly sits on the bed and starts taking a deep breath. She was shaking by what she saw. Murder. Her friend was murdered. When the realization hits her, it was all too much to bear and she starts crying. Demetri tries consoling her by putting his arms around her.

"It was just a nightmare, you're now awake. I'm right here." He tells her.

"She was murdered, Demetri. Valentina was murdered."

That startled him for a second, "What are you talking about?"

"That's what my dream was. Valentina was showing me her murder. It was a man, with brown hair, dressed in black. He was holding her down and biting her neck. She was wearing the red dress that I hated. God, I hated that dress and that's the dress she died in! Oh, and it was in a building. The dream was in a field but I know that it was in a building. I know it." She rambles on.

If Demetri still had a heartbeat then it would be on overload and beating out of his chest. Lorraine just described Valentina's death without her actually being there.

"Were you able to see his face?" He quietly asks.

"No. I only know that he has brown hair and wore all black."

This calmed Demetri down. 'How was this possible?' he asked himself. Being a vampire, one had no choice but to believe in the supernatural, but out of all the humans, she had to have some sort of gift? Was it clairvoyance?

Lorraine got up to go to the bathroom to splash some water on her face. Demetri follows her.

"Do you feel better now?" He asks.

"Slightly," she responds but then she notices the time, "Oh I am so sorry for waking you so early, Demetri. I feel terrible!"

"It is alright. I do not sleep."

"Seriously, I feel so bad now. I'm such a terrible girlfriend and I just got the job."

He puts both hands on each side of her face, "No, you're not. And as I said before I was not asleep." He leans over and kisses her on the lips. This simple gesture calms both of them.

"Don't ever stop kissing me." She whispers to him as their foreheads touch.

"And I never will. I don't remember the last time I was emotionally with someone. And not that I've found you…" he kisses her some more.

"Hey," she says as they parted, "Your friend never came to pick you up."

"Well, I never called him."

"What?" she says laughingly, "Why not?"

"Well even though I did not plan on making love to you last night, I had planned on sleeping over."

"Oh really?" she responds crossing her arms. "And who says that I would have let you stayed?"

"Because, my darling child, the little while that I've known you I noticed that you're good-hearted. You always want to help others. Surely, you wouldn't have let a helpless soul like me wander alone?"

She play punches his chest while laughing.

"You are evil!" she tells him. "Pure evil!"

"But I'm smart and lovable as well."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

Right as they're about to embrace again, Lorraine's cell rings. She picks up the phone but doesn't recognize the number.

"Hello?"

"Hey babe! Did I wake you?"

"What do you want?" Lorraine answers Kyle, her ex-boyfriend.

Demetri could clearly hear that the person on the other end was a man but he also heard the annoyance in Lorraine's voice.

"A) I have to come over your place later on today because you need to sign some paperwork that needs to be faxed ASAP. And B) most importantly B) I miss you and us, and think that we should give it another shot."

"A) At what time. B) Feelings are not mutual."

Demetri was growing angry about the conversation. He heard every word that the man was saying and truth be told, he was jealous. Vampires have always been possessive race.

"Lorraine, hang up." Demetri he says through his teeth.

"Kyle, I have to go. Text me the time and place." She quickly hangs up, "I don't appreciate that tone of voice."

"I am sorry. I just don't appreciate being ignored for another man. And one you obviously had a 'connection' with."

"I have to say Demetri, you are observant, but I wasn't ignoring you. Kyle is my ex-boyfriend, true, but we work together. I apparently have some papers that need signing in the embassy and he wanted to have me signed them as soon as possible. The embassy is 30 minutes away and since today he had errands to run down here, he's bringing them with him. That's it." She responded omitting the fact that Kyle was interested in getting back together.

"When will you be meeting him?"

"He said around 9:30 – 10 but I told him to text me the exact time and the place."

"I will not be able to go with you. I have to leave here at 8 to be at work." Truth is he had to leave because today would be a sunny day, unlike yesterday.

"That's okay."

"I have a mobile, so you may text me throughout the day. I'll text back when I can. Will that be okay?"

"Yes, it will. Now let's go back to sleep, you need to rest before you go to work. Oh, at what time will you be off?" she asks him as they get into bed.

"I will let you know when I get to work. I do not have a fixed schedule."

"Okay. Maybe we can have dinner or do something later on." She says as she puts her head on his chest.

"That would be good." And Lorraine drifted to sleep.

Demetri was awake rethinking about today's events. He had to admit that Felix was right, there was no point in beating around the bush: this woman was his mate. She was meant as a mission but now he's lying in bed with her. That's not his regular behavior during missions or in general. Normally after having sex with his lovers he would just leave a rose by their bedsides and leave. However, with Lorraine, it was a different story. He did not want to leave. He just wanted to lie there and listen to her heartbeat and her breathing. The sounds soothed him. He loved the fact that when going to bed, she puts her head on his chest and her leg over his own. Demetri can easily see this as being their routine.

Yesterday, he had followed her throughout the day with Simon, from the outside market to her getting ready to him "accidentally" bumping into them at the restaurant. He was on high alert: watching everything that she did and how she did them, who she was talking to and who she smiled at. It would hit a raw nerve every time she spoke to a man, even Simon, but that was before he got a closer look at their relationship. And now this Kyle is calling her and telling her that he's missing her, missing them. Kyle lifespan has suddenly shortened by several decades. Yes, his behavior was out of the ordinary.

However, her dream about Valentina was on his mind as well. She described the event perfectly, yet she wasn't there. When she had told him that she couldn't see the killer's face, a wave of calm ran right through him. But how long is that going to last? If Lorraine is a clairvoyant, he will not share that knowledge with anyone, not even Felix.

His thoughts were interrupted by Lorraine accidently rubbing her leg on Felix's crotch. This mad him hard again but he's always been at the ready for certain nightly activities. Being a vampire, stamina was never an issue. 'She just started sleeping, would it be wise to wake her?' he asks himself. No, it wouldn't. Still, today he will need relief from her, and that relief will come from several sessions.

*PLEASE REVIEW/COMMENT. THAT WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. THANK YOU*


	8. Chapter 8

Demetri gently shakes Lorraine awake.

"I just wanted to tell you that I was leaving." He tells her. "Will you message me?"

"I will, baby." She responds half asleep.

That simple nickname gave him chills. Happy, he leans in to kiss her and then makes his way back to the coven.

An hour later, Lorraine wakes up to her phone ringing.

"Hello?"

"Hey, where are you?" Kyle asks.

"What?"

"We were supposed to meet at the gardens! The one with the waterfall. Did you forget? You got my text, right?"

"Sorry, I was asleep. Give me 30 to 45 min, I just got up."

She hangs up and goes straight to the shower. Today was a beautiful sunny day, so she opted for a dress. Her dress of choice was short and has the color of orchid with orange flowers. She picked tan kitten heels with double straps. Her make up was on the light side. She texted Demetri to tell him where she was meeting Kyle, then texted Simon to ask him to meet her, grabbed her purse and left for the gardens.

It took her 15 min by taxi to get to there.

"Lorraine! Over here!" She hears Kyle calling out to her as she arrived. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you. So where are the papers?" she asks as she sits down to look at the menu.

"Straight to the point huh? I already ordered a calzone for you."

"Thank you but I won't be able to eat that. I think that I'll get a Greek salad instead." 'Yes, Greek sounds perfect! Especially since I had one the night before.' She thinks to herself and giggles.

The waiter comes over and she orders her salad.

"Only a salad? I hope that you're not on a diet because you look great!"

"Thank you, and no not on a diet but I'm cleansing."

"Oh okay then. So, how have you been?"

"I'm great, sad but great."

"How can you be sad and great at the same time?"

"Oh you haven't heard, have you? Valentina is missing." She informs him. She preferred omitting that she had died because there was no physical evidence to prove that she was actually dead, only her mother's vision and her dream.

"Oh. I didn't know. I hope that everything turns out okay for her," he says uncomfortably, "I know that you girls are close."

"Yeah."

"Listen, I don't mean to sound insensitive because I know that you're sad but I really need to talk to you. Just like you went straight to the point, so will I." He says but stops to take a deep breath. "I know that I've fucked up with you. I truly do but I honestly miss you. I could say that I miss our friendship, which I do, but I mostly miss our relationship. I loved you, I still love you and I will do whatever it takes to have you in my life again. I was thinking that we could go to couples counseling to work on our problems. We had a month apart and had time to cool down, so now would be the best time."

"Kyle, I'm not interested whatsoever in getting back together with you. I loved you as well, truly and deeply, but you easily threw that away."

"Listen, I was mad and it escalated. I didn't want you to find out the way you did. Shit, I didn't want you to find out at all. I know I fucked up, I knew I was fucking up but I was mad. You know how I am when I'm mad: I don't think, I just want to hurt."

"Honestly, there really is no purpose in continuing this conversation. I came here just to sign the papers and for nothing more. Just give them to me to sign."

"There are no papers. I needed a way to get you to see me because I knew you wouldn't have let me into your apartment. I'm sorry for lying but I was desperate. A desperate man does desperate things."

"Look, when I said goodbye to you, to us, I meant goodbye forever and not goodbye for a month. I'm simply done. There's nothing that you could ever do to make up for what you did. Nothing."

"You have someone else, don't you?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. And even if I didn't, my answer would still be no."

There was an awkward silence. Lorraine was now eating her Greek salad while Kyle was looking at her and breathing hard to calm down.

"It's because you saw us." Kyle says, "You saw us fucking and the image is stuck in your head. But my question is this, why forgive Valentia and not me?"

"She's my best friend."

"Apparently not, if I, your boyfriend, was able to fuck her."

"Maybe so but I have my reasons. But tell me something, was it worth it?"

"Not at all. But let me tell you something, when she comes back from wherever she is, stop being friends with her. That's my advice to you, for your sake."

"Is that a threat?"

"Not at all. You have to admit that the girl is not all right in the head. I know that she was envious of you but I honestly think that she borderline hates you. When you caught us, we stopped. Well I stopped. The girl pursued me relentlessly. And one night, she showed up to my place, drunk as fuck, complaining how you thought that you were better than her. Apparently you always got the cuter boyfriends, the better grades, the big house, better friends, and great job. She was bitter when it came to you and said that her life would be better if you were dead."

"I don't believe you." She says taken aback by what he said.

"Believe it. She was envious of everyone but especially you."

"Tell me Kyle, what did you do when she came to you drunk? Did you fuck her or send her home?"

"She got fucked." He responded without shame, "Why wouldn't we fuck her?"

"We?"

"Jason was staying over. When she came over drunk, she kept on saying that she was better than you in everything, especially sex. So I asked her to prove it. I asked her to take us both. So we both took turns with her, we even took her at the same time. That bitch loved it. And once we were done, we kicked her out."

"So you took advantage of a drunk woman? Is that what you're telling me?"

"Oh she knew exactly what she was doing, trust me. And she loved every minute."

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"So you know everything, so when we get back together it truly is a clean slate."

"Kyle we're not going to be together. Never. So stop trying because you'd be wasting your time."

"For you, it would never be time wasted. I love you, Lorraine and I wont stop."

"Dude, whatever." She says but realizes something. "Why were you mad at me? We didn't have one fight while together."

She hit a nerve: his jaws clenched up and a sneer was slowly appearing.

"Simon." He says.

"What about him?"

"You know damn well what about him. You guys were always together, giggling and laughing. I know you two messed around. Don't ask me how I knew but I just did."

"What the fuck are you talking about? Simon is my best friend. He's the brother that I never had. Nothing ever happened between us, and nothing ever will. You have fucked up issues! Would you fuck your sister?"

Kyle scoffs at what she was saying.

"Believe me if you want, I honestly don't care, and it most certainly doesn't matter. So Kyle stop calling me unless it's work related. And especially don't call me at 4 freaking in the morning. You woke my boyfriend up!"

"How quickly we move on."

"At least I moved on after the relationship ended."

"That was a low blow."

"That was the truth."

"Shit the tension is high in here! Thank God that I'm interrupting!" Says Simon as he drags a chair to the table.

"Of course, you had to show up!" Kyle basically yells out.

"Kyle here is blaming us for cheating on me with Valentina! He said that he was mad at me because he thought that I was cheating on him with you." Lorraine updates Simon on their conversation.

"Seems to me like Kyle needs to grow some balls and say that he wanted to fuck around and was dirty enough to fuck with your best friend. That's what I think."

"Fuck you, Simon." Kyle spits out.

"Oh shit Lorraine, Kyle's bi now! Sweetie, if you're able to suck both of my balls while stroking me, I might give you a shot. I'm not making any promises but I might." Simon mocks him.

"I'm leaving. Lorraine, I'll call you in a day or two when you've calmed down."

"Kyle, I am calm. Don't call me. We're over. Goodbye." And with that Kyle walks away.

"Why on earth would you want to meet with him after all that he put you through? What a twat!"

"He lied to me. He told me that I had forgotten to sign some papers from the embassy and they needed to be sent

ASAP." She explains to him. "But enough about that, let me tell you what happened after you left last night."

Lorraine proceeds to tell Simon everything from the night before, from calling the taxi to this morning; she didn't forget any detail including the width of Demetri's shaft.

"He was glorious!" She exclaims.

"When you say 'he' are you talking about Demetri or his dick?"

"Both damn it! Both!"

"Miss Lorraine, I have to say that this is very unlike you."

"I totally know!" She responds giggling, "But I don't know why Simon, there's a connection there."

"He's your soul mate."

"What? Since when do you believe in soul mates?"

"You know how sometimes I can sense certain things. That's what I sense here. Demetri is an old soul with secrets, very dark secrets. For instance, if someone came up to me and said that Demetri was a hitman or has killed before, I'd say yeah sounds about right."

"Simon, you're freaking me out. Now I'm thinking that he's going to try to kill me, to kill us."

"He won't. Trust me on this, he won't hurt you or us. Did you see the way that the man was looking at you all night? He was fucking claiming you as his. When you guys were dancing, I was looking at you and he was completely lost in you, smelling you. I don't know if it was magical or mystical or weird, but it was something."

Lorraine knew that Simon had supernatural abilities, he could easily decipher someone, and he could sense things from people that were unexplainable. So if Simon told her something, she would believe him 100% and never doubt a word. Last night was truly magical; it felt like she was lost in Demetri and not the other way around. If something strong and meaningful can come out of this, Lorraine would be grateful.

"You know that I never liked Kyle. Never have and never will. He's a spoiled rich boy. However, he did have feelings for you; I'll give him that. Too bad they weren't strong enough to change him."

"Too bad for him! Did you know that he had a threesome with Valentina? Him and Jason."

"Jason? As in Jason from accounting?"

"The one and only!"

"The man is single so he can have threesomes if he wants to. But Kyle's a fucking pig."

"That's my story: ex-boyfriend fucking best friend… Do you know that he said that Valentina borderline hated me?"

"I believe that. The woman was envious of you, of everything that you did. Since we're on the topic of Valentina, I have to tell you something. I think that Demetri knows what happened to her."

"What?"

"Either he was there or knows something. I'm not quite sure. But can I say something that might piss you off?"

"Go on…"

"First, how important is it to solve this? Do we have to solve this?"

"Simon! Of course we do!"

"Okay, okay. Second, what will happen if you realize that Demetri was involved?"

Lorraine was just quiet. She had never thought in a thousand years that Demetri would be involved. Shit, she never thought that she would be involved with a man so dashing as Demetri. Simon's questions were making her dizzy and making her realize that everything was happening so fast. However, things with Demetri felt timely and right. What if he was involved with Valentina's murder? Surely, she couldn't stay with her killer?

"I don't know, I guess I'd have to leave him." She finally responds.

"How about just forgetting about it?"

"Well I'd have to eventually forget about him."

"No. I mean forget about it, about his involvement. He has a link to this and whatever the link is forget about it and move on. Valentina is not worth your happiness and believe me when I say that Demetri is going to be in your life for a long time."

"Simon, how can you honestly think that I'd stay involved with my best friend's murderer? What if it was you?"

"You need to stop calling this woman your best friend! She's not your fucking best friend! And yes, you will act differently if it was me because I'm your actual best friend!" Simon yells out. "I want you to pretend that I'm a woman, I'm Simone. I, Simone, your best friend would not have fucked your boyfriend. As much as I hate Kyle, he did not take advantage of Valentina. They used each other to get back at you: him for whatever backward reason and her out of hatred. Baby, it's time to face reality. Valentina was not your friend, let alone your best friend. So if you have to choose between Valentina and Demetri, Demetri should be the winner."

"I know that I have something with him. Feelings? Yes. Sexual attraction? Definitely. And I know that I want this man in my life. But if he's involved in Valentina's death… And to be honest, I do have to face the fact that a friend wouldn't have betrayed me in such a way. I know that. I truly do but it's hard for me because of her childhood and let me stop you right now. I know that eventually we need to outgrow our past, I know that. But maybe she wasn't there yet." She says while sighing. This was too much; she puts her elbows on the table and puts her head in both hands.

"I just have one final question." Simon says.

"Yes?"

"Did you at least shave the punani? You didn't force the man to fight the bush to find paradise, did you?"

"Simon!"

"Homeboy looks like he's a pounder and wouldn't care about the bush."

"A pounder?"

"You know? Pound you into oblivion. Bam, bam, bam! He's going to fuck you at every turn."

They both laughed so hard.

Lorraine's cell beeps indicating that she has a message.

"It's Demetri. He's asking me how my meeting with Kyle went." She responded that it was dramatic. She then poses to take a selfie to send to him. "Hey come take a selfie with me to send to Demetri."

"Ha! Okay. Oh let's do duck lips!"

"And this is why we're best friends."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Meanwhile, a huge smile was on Demetri's face as he receives the pictures from Lorraine. He made the one of her alone blowing him a kiss as his screensaver.

"She is beautiful, Demetri." Marcus admits.

"I apologize, Master. I did not hear you come in."

"I'm the one who should apologize, I've entered your quarters without asking permission. So, I apologize Demetri."

"No apologies necessary. How may I be of service?"

"No services required. I just wanted to know how the investigation is going."

"She's still searching for answers but her actions are being thwarted. She is not a threat."

"Very good, Demetri. Another question, if you don't mind."

"I do not, Master."

"The woman in the picture, who is she?"

"She is someone that I am courting."

"Is she your mate?"

"I believe so, Master."

"Is she also the same woman being investigated? Valentina's friend?"

"Yes, Master." There was no point in lying to Marcus.

"Thank you for your honesty, Demetri. This woman, how do you know that she is your mate?"

Demetri tells him of the past days spent spying on her and his reactions to her actions. He included their lovemaking session and her scent. However, he did omit his suspicion that she was clairvoyant and her dream.

"I see. Those are the signs of a mate, however we can be certain once I met her. Do you intend on turning her?"

"I wish to with my Masters consent, of course."

"Consent will be given. We cannot separate a family, that's for sure." Demetri knew that if Marcus were on his side about turning Lorraine, the rest would follow. Ever since Marcus lost his beloved Didyme mysteriously, he has been a proponent for mating.

"Thank you, Master. And thank you for insisting that I be the one in charge."

"I sensed a change when you came back from our visitors. I saw a slight rope attached to you, thin and golden, so I just assumed. I give you permission to tell her about our world and when she's ready bring her to us. I know that Aro will want to see if she has any powers. Be well." And Marcus walks out of the room.

Demetri walks over to the windows and awaits the sun to go down or the clouds to come out to go back to Lorraine. His cock is hard; he's in desperate need for relief. And relief he'll get. This morning, Lorraine had looked too peaceful to fuck so he had just said his goodbyes. However, once he's back with her, he won't have mercy for her body.

So now it was just a waiting game.

***Please review***


End file.
